The keyboard player hosted Saturday night’s second Make-A-Wish gala, which featured performances from Cain and The Oak Ridge Boys. The event at the Omni Nashville Hotel raised an estimated $200,000 for the charity, which grants wishes to children dealing with potentially life-threatening medical conditions.

“I lead the charge last year and everyone followed me,” Cain said of planning the first gala. “We try to keep it intimate. It’s all about the kids. It’s not really this big musical event so much is it that people who care about kids should come and make a difference in their lives. That’s really ultimately what we all want.”

In the mid-80s a teenager with advanced cystic fibrosis wanted to meet Journey. The band was flying to New York and members agreed to stop in Cleveland and see the boy. When they got to the hospital, Cain realized the child was on his death bed. Members told him they brought him a song to hear that no Journey fan had ever heard at the time – “Only The Young Can Say.” The boy put on his headphones, smiled, laid back on his pillow and went into a coma while he was listening to the song.

Cain said he died the next day.

“It was life changing for me,” Cain said. “’Only the Young Can Say,’ it was meant for his send-off. Songs have a destiny.”

Cain moved to Nashville five years ago, and before that he was heavily involved in the San Francisco branch of Make-A-Wish. Once here, he helped organize the Middle Tennessee chapter’s first gala -- Stars for Wishes. The event, now in its second year, takes place at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at the Omni Nashville Hotel in Nashville. The evening will include dinner, an auction and performances from Cain and The Oak Ridge Boys. Part of the auction will include the chance to sing "Don't Stop Believin'" on stage with Cain.

“The kids that get these wishes, it gives them so much hope,” he said. “It’s a wonderful way to give everyone a break from terrible illnesses. What I love about Make-A-Wish is its very much in the moment of things. I’m all about research, but there are kids that need some hope.”

Tickets are $300 a seat at www.eventbrite.com. Type Jonathan Cain in the search field. For more information, call Make-A-Wish at 221-2200.

Before the Country Music Hall of Famer’s death in April at age 81, he and his management were planning a Nov. 22 farewell concert at the Nashville venue with dozens of guest performers — friends that he couldn’t stand to leave out of the occasion.

Soon, that final concert before Jones’ retirement turned into a tribute to the late country legend, and the guestlist only grew.

Click here to see a photo gallery of "Playin’ Possum! The Final No Show" at Bridgestone Arena on Friday.Here, Dierks Bentley performs. (Photo: John Partipilio/The Tennessean)

11:11 p.m.: A tribute concert to George Jones would not be complete without “He Stopped Loving Her Today.” Alan Jackson does the honors.

Then he invites Nancy Jones on stage and invites the audience to sing along.

“This is the greatest country song by the greatest country singer, Mr. George Jones,” Jackson says, as he again launches into the chorus of “He Stopped Loving Her Today.”

“Thank you all so much,” he says, “George, we love you.”

Leaving the stage, his arm around Nancy Jones’ waist, Jackson stops to set the rocking chair on stage in motion. As the chair meant for Jones rocks slowly back and forth, the crowd claps and cheers begging for more.

But it is, indeed, the end.

George Jones (photo: Peyton Hoge).

George Jones’ tribute is complete, after almost four hours.

The audience has made it clear that, like his chair, it truly rocked.

11:09 p.m.: Stacy McCloud returns to the stage and invites the audience to recognize Nancy Jones.

It’s been 30 years and 15 No. 1 hits since Nashville songsmith Bob DiPiero wrote his first country chart-topper — The Oak Ridge Boys’“American Made” — with Pat McManus. But DiPiero vividly remembers every step of the song’s journey.

Click the photo above to see a photo gallery of George Jones. Here, a surprised Jones accepts his award for Male Vocalist of the Year at the 15th annual CMA Awards show, nationally televised from the Grand Ole Opry House. Jones also won the same honor in 1980. (Ricky Rogers / The Tennessean) 10/12/1981

When George Jones announced his farewell tour in 2012, he intended to play his last show at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 22, 2013. A roster of artists with some of the biggest names in music was built to sing him into retirement.

After Jones died on April 26, 2013, the decision was made to turn the show — now called “Playin’ Possum! The Final No Show” — into a tribute for Jones and the final lineup was released this morning.

Click the photo above to see a photo gallery of Randy Travis over the years.

Country music stars and fans joined together to urge prayers for Randy Travis on Thursday after he underwent brain surgery following a stroke at a Texas hospital.

Travis remained in critical condition Thursday after surgery to relieve pressure on his brain Wednesday night, publicist Kirt Webster said. The 54-year-old Grammy Award-winning singer had been improving while being treated for heart failure caused by a viral infection when he had the stroke.

The setback occurred hours after doctors said Travis was showing signs of improvement since the start of treatment Sunday for congestive heart failure and the insertion of a pump to help his heart increase blood flow.

Mr. Foglesong was admired for his musicality and his savvy — he signed Brooks, the biggest-selling solo artist in country music history, to a deal after every other major label passed — and for the measured manner with which he conducted business, but more so for his kind and decent approach to life and living. Through Nashville's wild-eyed 1970s and '80s, Mr. Foglesong was smiling and quiet, understated and helpful.

And so when word spread of Mr. Foglesong's passing, even those who benefited most from his business acumen spoke first of his character.

CLICK FOR PHOTO GALLERY: Johnny Cash's family and friends and country stars gathered on stage to salute the 'Man in Black' at the Ryman Auditorium on June 5, as the U.S. Postal Service unveiled a new 'Forever Stamp' featuring the country legend (photo: Samuel M. Simpkins/The Tennessean)

"I've been everywhere, man," Johnny Cash once sang. Now, an iconic image of the Man In Black will continue to travel the globe through a new limited-edition "Forever Stamp" issued by the U.S. Postal Service. As the stamp went on sale Wednesday morning, family, fans and friends of the late country legend gathered at the Ryman Auditorium to celebrate and pay musical tribute.

It was an emotional morning for Cash's children in attendance, and as they spoke to the audience, John Carter Cash and Kathy Cash believed it would have been a moving moment for their father, too.